Chalcedony
by Yuuki Miyaka
Summary: A little mood piece about the roses of the desert.


Chalcedony  
A Gundam Wing Fic  
by: Yuuki Miyaka  


Blond and sweet-faced, Quatre Raberba Winner looked up from the small pouch he held, meeting Trowa's eye steadily. "We have roses in the desert, you know," his gentle voice piped, the words coming out of the blue. Trowa's single visible eye narrowed in query, and Quatre nodded. From where he sat, Duo looked up as well. 

"No way, man. Roses need water, don't they?" When Quatre nodded hesitantly, Duo grinned. "There ya go, man. The desert doesn't have any water, so ya can't have roses."

"Maxwell," said Wufei quietly, growing interested in the exchange. "Shut up."

"But we do have roses," Quatre protested. "And they never die, either."

"Not dyin', man, that'd be nice. No need for Death, then, but hey, I could live with that." Duo grinned at his own joke, but the others could hear the wistful tone in his words.

"Tell us about the roses," Trowa said quietly, noting that even Heero had looked up in a kind of scowling interest. At his invitation, Quatre perked up again, brightening at the idea that he might be able to share. His eyes caught Trowa's again, holding the pilot of Gundam HeavyArms steady within the gaze.

"They don't need water. They're not like normal roses." He withdrew a stone from his pouch, handing it to Trowa. Trowa gazed down at it impassively, then handed it over to Duo. Each in his turn, the four pilots listening to Quatre's explanation gazed down at the rock.

"It surprises some people that beauty can come from such a source. I guess a lot of people out there think of the desert as death, a place where no life could ever exist." Duo's head came up at that, and Trowa was reminded briefly that the pilot often called himself Shinigami, God of Death. Whether the title was a joke or serious, he certainly seemed intrigued by Quatre's account. "They're wrong, though. And even though our roses aren't alive, they remind us all of life."

"Life," Wufei mused quietly, staring down at the stone he'd just been given. Trowa's face remained impassive, but he nodded to himself, understanding the Chinese pilot's feelings. That little stone to remind others of life? And yet . . . seeing it, he could understand.

"I guess it seems a little silly, being reminded of life by something that's never even known it," Quatre said, his large, young eyes downcast as his pale cheeks flushed pink with shame. Trowa opened his mouth to respond, and was startled to be cut off by, of all people, Heero.

"No." The word was short, clipped. The Wing pilot always spoke that way, though, and Trowa wondered if he'd continue. He didn't have to wonder for long. "If it helps, then carry it. Worrying about what we think is weak." There was a derisive quality to the words, brought on by the mention of weakness. The Perfect Soldier couldn't afford to be weak, and held himself to impossible standards, Trowa knew. But evidently, Quatre didn't hear the derision, for he jumped up, hugging Heero impulsively.

"Oh, arigato, Heero-kun!" Trowa watched the exchange, watched as Duo's fist clenched at his side, as Wufei turned the stone over in his hand, then handed it to Duo quickly, seeming to want to be rid of it. The pilot of HeavyArms waited for jealousy to touch him and wasn't surprised when it didn't come. Those around him had formed comfortable friendships, and he wasn't exactly excluded, even if he wasn't openly welcomed. It was more than he'd had, and it was enough, after all.

Duo handed him the stone, and he regarded it once more, impassive as always. The lines were rough, but clearly nature itself had shaped the form of the rose. Inside the rigid beige blossom, Trowa began to find a rough beauty, held firm by rock and shaped by nature and time. He turned the stone over and over, gazing at it from every direction as though to puzzle out the secret that made it what it was. And when he was finally finished, he noticed that Quatre had come to sit just in front of him. He moved to hand the stone back, and Quatre took it, looking at it himself for a while.

"It's called chalcedony. I always thought the name was as pretty as the rose itself." Young eyes sought his, and Trowa nodded agreement. "I'd forgotten I had it," he continued, handing it once more to Trowa, who frowned faintly as he took it yet a third time. "It took me a while to realize why. I don't need the reminder anymore. I have all of you to remind me."

Duo started to speak, only to be silenced by a sharp look from both Heero and Wufei. "They understand, I think," Quatre said quietly. "But I don't think you do, Trowa. Not yet. So, until you figure it out, I'd like you to keep this. Hopefully, it'll remind you of all the beauty in the world, just like it did me."

Startled, Trowa's hand closed over a sharp ridge. There was pain, and when he opened it, the stone was stained red. "Geez," Duo's cheerful voice teased, breaking the moment. "Ya give him a really cool gift, and what's the first thing he does to it? Bleeds all over it!" Wufei snarled at the pilot who called himself Shinigami, and Heero growled, but Duo just smiled. 

There were words to be said, and he had never been good with words. But he'd force himself now. It was too important. "Thank you, Quatre . . . kun." In the end, it was enough.

_-Owari-_


End file.
